Book III (continued, part 6)
What we teach children in the Sunday school, and what we teach young men in the theological seminary, must illustrate the two ideas; the same truths to babes in element, but to men in all their bearings and relations.
The defenders of the modern creed of Pius the Fourth (A.D. 1564), finding no authority in Holy Scripture for most of its peculiarities, which are all imposed as requisite to salvation as if it were the Apostles' Creed itself, endeavour to support them, by asserting that they belonged to the secret teaching of the early Church, of which they claim Clement as a witness. But the fallacy is obvious. Either they were thus secreted, or they were not. If not, as is most evident (because they contradict what was openly professed), then no ground for the pretence. But suppose they were, what follows? Such secrets were no part of the faith, and could not become so at a later period. If they were kept secret by the new theologians, and taught to "Gnostics" only, they would still be without primitive example, but might be less objectionable. But, no! they are imposed upon all, as if part of the ancient creeds; imposed, as if articles of the Catholic faith, on the most illiterate peasant, whose mere doubt as to any of them excludes him from the Church here, and from salvation hereafter. Such, then, is a fatal departure from Catholic orthodoxy and the traditions of the ancients. The whole system is a novelty, and the product of the most barren and corrupt period of Occidental history.
The Church, as Clement shows, never made any secret of any article of the Christian faith; and, as soon as she was free from persecution, the whole testimony of the Ante-Nicene Fathers was summed up in the NicaenoConstantinopolitan Confession. This only is the Catholic faith, and the council forbade any additions thereto, in the way of a symbol. See Professor Shedd's Christian Doctrine, vol. ii. p. 438. Ed. 1864, New York.
(p. 302, note 9, Elucidation III., continued.)
This is a valuable passage for the illustration of our author's views of the nature of tradition, (<greek>kata</greek> <greek>ton</greek> <greek>semnon</greek> <greek>ths</greek> <greek>paradosews</greek> <greek>kanona</greek> as a canon "from the creation of the world;" a tradition preluding the tradition of true knowledge; a divine mystery preparing for the knowledge of mysteries,--clearing the ground from thorns and weeds, beforehand, so that the seed of the Word may not be choked. Now, in this tradition, be includes a true idea of Gentilism as well as of the Hebrew Church and its covenant relations; in short, whatever a Christian scholar is obliged to learn from "Antiquities" and "Introductions" and "Bible Dictionaries," authenticated by universal and orthodox approbation. These are the providential provisions of the Divine (Economy, for the communication of truth. Dr. Watts has a sermon on the Inward Witness to Christianity, which I find quoted by Vicesimus Knox (Works, vol. vii. p. 73, et seqq.) in a choice passage that forcibly expands and expounds some of Clement's suggestions, though without referring to our author.
VI.
(Justification, p. 305 note 7.)
Without reference to my own views on this great subject, and desiring merely to illustrate our author, it shall suffice to remark, here, that to suppose that Clement uses the word technically, as we now use the language of the schools and of post-Reformation theologians, would hopelessly confuse the argument of our author. It is clear that he has no idea of any justification apart from the merits of Christ: but he uses the term loosely to express his idea, that as the Law led the Hebrews to the great Healer, who rose from the dead for our justification, in that sense, and in no other, the truth that was to be found in Greek Philosophy, although a minimum, did the same for heathen who loved truth, and followed it so far as they knew. Whether his views even in this were correct, it would not become me, here, to express any opinion.(See below Elucidation XIV.)
VII.
(Philosophy, p. 305, note 8.)
It is so important to grasp just what our author understands by this "philosophy," that I had designed to introduce, here, a long passage from Bishop Kaye's lucid exposition. Finding, however, that these elucidations are already, perhaps, over multiplied, I content myself with a reference to his Account, etc. (pp. 118-121).
VIII.
(Overflow of the Spirit, p. 306, note 1.)
Here, again, I wished to introduce textual citations from several eminent authors: I content myself with a very short one from Kaye, to illustrate the intricacy, not to say the contradictory character, of some of Clement's positions as to the extent of grace bestowed on the heathen. "Clement says that an act, to be right, must be done through the love of God. He says that every action of the heathen is sinful, since it is not sufficient that an action is right: its object or aim must also be right" (Account, etc., p. 426). For a most interesting, but I venture to think overdrawn, statement of St. Paul's position as to heathen "wisdom," etc., see Farrar's Life of St. Paul (p. 20, et seqq., ed. New York). Without relying on this popular author, I cannot but refer the reader to his Hulsean Lecture (1870, p. 135, et seqq.).
IX.
(Faith without Learning, p. 307, note 5.)
The compassion of Christ for poverty, misery, for childhood, and for ignorance, is everywhere illustrated in Holy Scripture; and faith, even "as a grain of mustard seed," is magnified, accordingly, in the infinite love of his teaching. Again I am willing to refer to Farrar (though I read him always with something between the lines, before I can adopt his sweeping generalizations) for a fine passage, I should quote entire, did space permit (The Witness of History to Christ, p. 172, ed. London, 1872). See also the noble sermon of Jeremy Taylor on John vii. 17 (Works, vol. ii. p. 53, ed. Bohn, 1844).
(The Open Secret, p. 313, note 3.)
The esoteric system of Clement is here expounded in few words: there is nothing in it which may not be proclaimed from the house-tops, for all who have ears to hear. It is the mere swine (with seed-pickers and jackdaws, the <greek>spermologoi</greek> of the Athenians) who must be denied the pearls of gnostic truth. And this, on the same merciful principle on which the Master was silent before Pilate, and turned away from cities where they were not prepared to receive his message.
XI.
(Bodily Purity, p. 317, note 1.)
From a familiar quotation, I have often argued that the fine instinct of a woman, even among heathen, enforces a true idea: "If from her husband's bed, as soon as she has bathed: if from adulterous commerce, not at all." This is afterwards noted by our author;[1] but it is extraordinary to find the mind of the great missionary to our Saxon forefathers, troubled about such questions, even in the seventh century. I have less admiration for the elaborate answers of the great Patriarch of Rome (Gregory), to the scrupulous inquiries of Augustine, than for the instinctive and aphoristic wisdom of poor Theano, in all the darkness of her heathenism.(See Ven. Bede, Eccles. Hist., book i. cap. 27, p. 131. Works, ed. London, 1843.)
XII.
(Clement's View of Philosophy, p. 318, note 4.)
I note the concluding words of this chapter (xvi.), as epitomizing the whole of what Clement means to say on this great subject; and, for more, see the Elucidation infra, on Justification.
XIII.
(The Ecstacy of Sibyl, etc., p. 319, note 3.)
No need to quote Virgil's description (AEneid, vi. 46, with Heyne's references in Excursus V.) but I would compare with his picture of Sibylline inspiration, that of Balaam (Num. xxiv. 3, 4, 15, 16), and leave with the student an inquiry, how far we may credit to a divine motion, the oracles of the heathen, i.e., some of them. I wish to refer the student, also, as to a valuable bit of introductory learning, to the essay of Isaac Casaubon (Exercitationes ad Baronii Prolegom., pp. 65-85, ed. Genevae, 1663).
XIV.
(Justification, p. 323, note 2.)
Casaubon, in the work just quoted above (Exercitat., i.) examines this passage of our author, and others, comparing them with passages from St. Chrysostom and St. Augustine, and with Justin Martyr (see vol. i. p. 178, this series, cap. 46). Bishop Kaye (p. 428) justly remarks: "The apparent incorrectness of Clement's language arises from not making that clear distinction which the controversies at the time of the Reformation introduced." The word "incorrectness," though for myself I do not object to it, might be said "to beg the question;" and hence I should prefer to leave it open to the divers views of readers, by speaking, rather, of his lack of precision in the use of a term not then defined with theological delicacy of statement.
XV.
(Chronology, p. 334, note 5.)
Here an invaluable work for comparison and reference must be consulted by the student; viz., the Chronicon of Julius Africanus, in Routh's Reliquioe (tom ii. p. 220, et seqq.), with learned annotations, in which (e g., p. 491) Clement's work is cited. Africanus took up chronological science in the imperfect state where it was left by Clement, with whom he was partially contemporary; for he was Bishop of Emmaus in Palestine (called also Nicopolis), and composed his fine books of chronological history, under Marcus Aurelius.[2] On the Alexandrian era consult a paragraph in Encyc. Britannica (vol. v. p. 714). It was adopted for Christian computation, after Africanus. See Eusebius (book vi. cap. 31), and compare (this volume, p. 85) what is said of Theophilus of Antioch, by Abp. Usher.[3]
THE STROMATA, OR MISCELLANIES.